Home Forums Reloading Big Game Rifles Let's talk .358 Winchester

Aight fellas -

I'm sure some of you have seen the doscount prices of the SS Ruger Hawkeye's in .358 Winchester. I had to pick one up. This will be my first .358 and my first Ruger, ever.

Let's talk bullets, effective range, and powders.

This will be an elk rifle or when I feel like it, a deer rifle. I've got loads of TAC, whcih appears to be a great powder match for the .358.

I'm thinking of necked up .308 Lapua brass with an tapered expander.

Give me the goods on the .358 Winchester -

I neck up Laupa brass with a Redding die/tapered ball, Tac powder and 225 grain bullets, mostly SGK's. The cartridge is a dandy on elk. Have no issues shooting game out to 250 yards.

Yep, jam lots of TAC in a case with a 200gr TSX. I've also shot 225NP and 250gr Oryx aslong with 200gr Hornadt and 220gt Speer. I would like to try the 180gr TTSX also.

In the middle of the move and I don't know if I should scratch my watch or wind my ass.

When you get in the 2700 range with 200's, 2500 with 225's and 2400 with 250's you are about right with TAC.

250 Speer Hot Cores hammers elk, 225 SGKs hammers deer but, my preference is a 200-250 grain cast which hammers all.

How'd the 225 NPs do Scott? About as expected I assume...

I used to use the 225 Sierras over a max load of IMR 4320 in a Savage 99 and a BLR. Great load, accurate, and hammered deer.

49 grains Varget, 200 grain Hornady R/N. Right place at right time and Blamo....venison on the pole. 2300 fps.... a nice load that is plenty accurate and perfect for a MI whitetails.

The boy's and I just used my M70 358 Win with the 200 gr TTSX with Steelhead's suggested dose of TAC to whack 10 critters in Africa. Recovered one after passing the length of a warthog. Could be used in a Barnes catalog photo.

I have worked up a nice load for the 358 win. using the 225 A-frame and IMR 3031. It works good for me,,,, I think you will love that rifle/round. Congrats on joining the (rare) club.

I'd like to see some pics from that trip. I smoked a doe this year with my BLR and about 51 grns of TAC over the 200 Hornady SP and I'd not hesitate to use it on something bigger so I can imagine what that 200 TTSX does, I'd also like to try the 180.

300jimmy that's a nice looking 99 you have there.

Has anyone used the new Hornady 200 gr Flex Tip bullet from a .358W yet? It has a BC of .300 and might be of interest for deer at longer ranges.


Link to Hornady .358" Flex Tip

The .358 Win. has been my primary woods cartridge since 1966. I have a number of them including 99's, M70, MS.
Presently I am shooting the 180 Speer FN with a spitzer me-plat.

There are photos posted on the African forum.

At 220 yards today, with 49.0 grains of TAC, a 200 TTSX at 2.80", with fireforming loads from .308 Lapua brass, this happened.



It shot just as well with the 225 NP, a 3 shot group of 1.80"ish at 220 yards although not as good a the sub-0.9" group pictured. Both bullets were the same POI, which is huge.

Recoil is a bit stiffer than the .22-250 or the .243...grin...

It's just a bit more than a 6x45, but not much.....


The 200gr TSX are silly in mine.

With both bullets and TAC, the warmer the load got, the tighter the groups....

Getting more than 49.0 grains of TAC in that Lapua case is going to be difficult.

Have you run them across the screens?

Screw the screens in this AZ heat and bright sun -

I don't trust the chrono I have right now. I gots to get me a new one as it's had a few blow overs in this wind.

Here's the only recovered 200 gr TTSX (on 10 animals taken) from the 358 Win. It entered on a slightly quartering frontal and was removed in the back hip.

I'd say that's about picture perfect -

Ran them across screens this morning Scott -

This rifle is stupid -

50.0 grains TAC for both

200 TTSX - AVG. 2,640 - 1.5" group at 220 yards
225 NP - AVG. 2,523 - group in the .9's at 220 yards

Again, this rifle is stupid.

Nice. How's the wallop on your end?

It's not bad really. It's there, for sure but just fine and I hate recoil, on average.

As Scott said, it's more than a 6x45...grin...

Thanks. I'm thinking it would likely be appropriate for an 8lb-ish rifle like the Ruger and not a 6.5lb-er like what I was considering. Could be a bit brisk.

I would agree with that totally -

It's gonna be a good 400 yard elk thumper when I get the dots lined up.

I'm still toying with throwing one together with a 20" tube and putting it in an Edge.

What gun are you shooting now Steelie? Congratulations on your new bride...she seems to have melowed you a bit.Would say something about your retirement but we both retired at about the same time. powdr

Ruger Hawkeye, blue/walnut version.

Thanks for the thanks. Monday is actually my 1st official day of retirement, I've been on leave since late June.

The only thing that keeps me from doing one is that I have a Whelen that is a hair over 7 pounds with scope so I don't know that I need a short/light 358 Win too.

The recoil there would be "brisk"...

Mine is built on a Mark X long action w/23in Douglas. I have every bullet I think they make except the 200gr TTSX. and that's the one I want to try. I may just buy those and call it done for deer and hogs here in Texas.It's long enough to have decent BC and looks wicked. I think I can get it to 2750fps w/N201 in my 23in barrel. Should be good to 350yds. powdr

Try a 180gr TTSX, that's one I'd like to punch a shoulder with.

I've used plain olde Remington and Hornady SPs in mine over the years. I don't think a deer need any more bullet than that at the modest velocities given with a 358W.

If after bigger game, I have about 4-500 Speer 250gr SPs to fill that role.

45.5 gr of 4320 pushing NP 225's. good groups and good terminal performance. Still pricey.

I'd really, really, really like to see Speer offer a Deep Curl 358 cal projectile, because I think that'd be perfect for the .358 win. I've heard some say that TSX's dont perform well at reduced impact velocities, and the NP's are painfully expensive. Thats why I think a ~200-225 Deep Curl would be perfect. Still waiting, and paying for those Partitions until then....

shane

I somewhat agree w/SuperCub...I think a man could use the 200gr Hornady for deer and the 250 Speers for elk and moose.The BC of the 200 Hornadys is dismal but getting to 300 is no problem. Those two should take care of a bunch of stuff. I would like to try some 200gr Corelokts and have a goodly stash of 225gr Ballistic tips that should be about perfect for all even though velocity wouldn't be that high. powdr

My thought exactly.

If BC was that important and LR shooting was in the works, I'd probably would not be carrying a 358W. Most of us here own faster chamberings for such things.

I tried 220 grain SP Hotcores over TAC today. 49 grains clocked around 2,520 and shot very well. Unfotunatley, there were feeding issues, every third round or so bound up instead of chambering. Perhaps seating depth changes might help?
Cases were Win with Fed 215m primers.

I have had good luck with 49 grains of plain old IMR-3031 and 200 grain Hornady SPs. Cases are Win again and primers are WLR. This loads reaches 2,660 and shoots around 1-1.5 inch groups in my Ruger Hawkeye.

I have yet to try it on game but really like the rifle and cartridge.

Several people have mentioned forming cases from .308s. Win and Hornady both make .358 brass. It can normally be found for around $30 for 50 cases.

-Z

making .358's from .308's is no challenge, and 308 brass is everywhere for next to nothing. as an example.... I didnt own ANY 308 brass, but my buddy has a 5 gallon bucket of it. I got 300 pieces of very good brass for $0.

I go to the 200g Hornady SP for deer and the 225NP (seconds of course) for bigger things. Almost all the cup and core bullets seem to function very well from the 358 win. One of my elk fell to a 250 hornady rn.

I am currently running three 358s. a Tang safety with a ER Shaw barrel. a MKII stainless with a Douglas barrel and a older BLR straight stock, with peep sights. All three are 20" barrels

I use a BLR and shoot an Accurate Mold that throws a 240 gr GC lead boolit cast of COWW+1%tin water dropped sized to .359. I use 42 gr of IMR3031 at 2200fps. It groups 2" and will make a donut of any flesh.

My M70 is a 20" 'er but in a rather heavy walnut stock. I picked up an "as formed" (i.e., ROUGH) High Tech stock at a gunshow a bit ago for $30 that I need to fit to it. It won't be a lightweight as it has sights, one piece steel BM, etc., but it'll help.

That Barnes bullet mushroomed out perfectly. I’m gonna have to try them and the Sierra 200 grain in my 358.

Wow! A 6 yo thread I hadn't seen. Not much has changed for 358 Win loads. Mule Deer's extremely helpful Handloader article (previously cited in my posts) on the 338Fed & 358Win set a modern standard for modern bolt rifles (Savage 99 actions aren't as strong, I think we'd agree). His best load for us living in no lead States (Kalifornia) is the 200 TSX w/ 52 gr TAC, producing 2749 fps from a 22" barrel on a Ruger Hawkeye. I've been using the 200 TTSX instead (only on paper so far) but my current effort is with the 180 TTSX which has reached 2825 fps using a VERY compressed TAC load. I'm searching for a faster powder, less compressed to use, which, theoretically, should provide an additional ~100 fps. At 2900 fps, the trajectory for the 180TTSX & 200 TTSX at 2750 fps are identical. The 358 Win is NOT just a short range woods cartridge. It is a true mid-range cartridge w/ modern bolt rifles, propellants & projectiles, easily & humanely capable of taking deer & elk to 300-400 yd.